a month without supermarket - new challenge for 2011 starts at post 1013

rach

in lots of ways i do wonder if these big box schemes are not going to become a problem in the same way as the supermarket...

i used to use riverford for a veg box. fab, but it was travelling 150 miles to get to me. not exactly local...

gonna stick with my local market, butcher and farmshop!

competitionscafe

I have used Swaddles in the past and they are pretty good. Their bacon and chicken stock in particular are excellent. Avoid their ready meals though - I once got a few for the freezer to use on those 'can't be bothered to cook' occassions and they were very average.

Swaddles original owners sold the business a year or two ago and they do seem a bit more impersonal now - think they are called OneFood Ltd or something but still trade under Swaddles brand.

tinselfairy

Went to the market today and I have bought 6 chicken sausages for £2.80, these will be tea for DH and DS this evening. I had a brief chat with the chap selling them, they rear the chickens and make all the sausages themselves. There were a few different varities and he sells them at £5 for 2 packs, so if they like them I'll go back for more.
Also bought a bit of veg and some bananas.
Checked out the independent cheap shop and found pasta, pasta sauce, pineapple and apple juice all at a good price.
Has anyone used Easy washing powder?
I normally buy the Co-op own brand as they do not animal test the ingredients or the product. Easy also make the same claim, but I have never used it and was wondering what it was like. I have used the washing up liquid in the past and I don't like that.
Also went into an independent chemist. They had a good range of toiletries, but as part of my new shopping regime I'm trying to buy more 'natural' items so there wasn't anything for me this time.

aimeelister

Right after lurcking for some time i did it today!

I went to the "local" butchers for some meat, ok so i had to drive 5 miles to the other town/village to find the butchers but its 6 years since we have had one in our village/s (we are 2 villages separated by a road). It was lovely. My parents are coming to take me out for supper on Sat as a celebration of gaining my phd and are staying, so i said i would get us cooked breakfast. I bought 9 rashers bacon, 1lb sausages, some black pudding :eek: and 2 chicken breasts for tonights meal (the butcher took them off the chicken in front of me and then offered me the leftover carcass, if it wasnt for the cat i would have had it and made some stock) and it came to £9.82. I was
impressed.

If i want meat i have also found a organic delivered box from about 6 miles in the other direction http://www.helenbrowningorganics.co.uk/. They do outsource for chickens and i phoned up who they go to http://www.sheepdrove.com/ and if i want to place an order to collect i need to say a day in advance so they can send the chicken to slaughter, you cant say fresher than that!!!!

I am going to go back to ordering my organic fruit and veg box and eggs which comes from about 6 miles away http://www.coleshillorganics.co.uk/. (only stopped before when i split up from partner, now sharing a house it makes economical sense again.) They grow a lot of their own and if they do have to out source its to hereford, which isnt far and then if they are going abroad they go fair trade as much as possible. The food always tasted beautiful, the carrots were soooooooo lovely.

Im going to walk into the other village (about 1.5miles) to go to the farmers market they have on every 1st and 3rd Friday of the month, and see whats about and what i could get from there.

We also have a hardware shop in the other village which will be useful for odd bits.

If i do need other things im then going to use either the local newsagents in the other village and failing that the Co-op in our village.

For real treat food there is a deli in the next door village and also in the nearby (5-6miles) towns.

The only thing im going to struggle on is Soya milk, http://www.alprosoya.co.uk/alpro/UK_en/product/bycategory/milk/9.html
and then the pet food as the cat is on the Iams indoor cat food (being a lazy indoor cat) and the guinea pig is on the pets at home non-selective food. I might see whether the other local town petshops stock it and see if i can then get it from there and not pets at home.

I feel rather pleased i dont have to go to the supermarkets. The only thing i might have to go there for is wine!!! I cant live without my alcohol and the co-op doesnt stock what i like!!!

Do i qualify for a number?

Aimee

kscour

been desperately trying to remember the company we bought sausages off from a stall in a show whilst on holiday. Here they are:-

http://www.supremesausages.co.uk/club/default.asp

sausages were delicious (we lived off them whilst on holiday!)- I'm quite tempted to join the sausage club now I've found their website.:D

Bargain_Rzl

I am finally discovering which parts of Borough Market are reasonably priced (as some stalls are extortionate!) and have had a good haul today for about £18, as I posted earlier on the Daily Thread. 21 big meaty sausages (5 plain, all the others "speciality" varieties), 2 packs of pancetta, half a dozen eggs and some cheese.

Off to Lewisham tomorrow to stock up on fruit and veg from the market but unfortunately my wally trolley still hasn't been delivered so I will end up with the arms of an orang-utan again

kscour

aimeelister wrote:

I feel rather pleased i dont have to go to the supermarkets. The only thing i might have to go there for is wine!!! I cant live without my alcohol and the co-op doesnt stock what i like!!!

Aimee

I get mine from virginwines.com, if I order 2 cases i get free delivery - I don't know if thats normal or just for over regular customers:o and you can go through quidco for 8%. They are also doing a fair trade case at the moment.

PS Welcome aboard!:D

Bargain_Rzl

Re: wine. Majestic Wine Warehouse is also worth ordering from, they do free delivery and - because they have their own delivery people, unlike Virgin/Laithwaites/Warehouse Wines - they let you specify a delivery slot so you know you will be in when your wine arrives.

aimeelister

lil_me wrote:

Seems swaddles is cheaper to order from direct aswell, rather than being sent to Goodnessdirect then to customer. Mince for example is £1 cheaper!

Just had a look and after going back and re-reading, http://www.helenbrowningorganics.co.uk is even cheaper than Swaddles and http://www.sheepdrove.com/ is even cheaper than Helen Brownings.

I have had the Helen Brownings before and can recomend them, I phoned up Sheepdrove and apparently they slaughter to order so need a 2 day lead time.

HTH someone.

Aimee

lil_me

Might give that sausage one a go, the sausages from the goodness box I put in a casserole tonight. Even my sausage mad son said they weren't very nice at all. Lamb and rosemary, very bitty and as if they had too much rusk etc in DP said (he's the meat person in this house after growing up with a butcher) as far as I was concerned they tasted like powdered meat, ewww not nice! Bacon didn't smell right cooked a bit of it to see and it still smelt funny, DP tried it and said was disgusting, so that is safer binned!

Eggs come with my fruit and veg weekly delivery £2 for 30 isn't bad for free range local eggs! Just usually takes me a couple of weeks to get through them, always do my poached eggs within a few days of them arriving, bloomin' lovely!

Thanks for the info Aimee, will look into both of those. Thankfully I don't drink any more so don't have the need/expense of buying it. Ooooo Helen Brownings does Wild Boar, yummy! Sheepdrove also do dog bones and foods Think I might get a box order from each over the next month or so, see what they are like. Am enjoying shopping around because I can do it sat on my lazy bum!